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COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA 
DEPARTMENT OF FORESTRY 



FOREST PROTECTION 
FIRE PREVENTION AND EXTINCTION 




BULLETIN 27 



R. Y. STUART, COMMISSIONER 



1922 



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LIBITARY OF CONGRESS 
RECEIVED 

JUL151922 

DOCUMENTS DIVISION 



PREVENT FOREST FIRES — IT PAYS 




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FOREWORD 



THE FOREST IS YOUR FRIEND. 

THE WATER YOU DRINK COMES FROM IT. 

NOTHING YOU USE OR WEAR COULD BE 
YOURS WITHOUT THE FOREST'S HELP. 

THE STATE FORESTS ARE YOUR PLAY- 
GROUNDS. THEY ARE WIDE OPEN FOR 
YOU TO FISH, HUNT AND CAMP. 

OUR FORESTS ARE ALMOST GONE. 

THEY WILL GROW AGAIN IF FIRES ARE KEPT 
OUT. 

THE FOREST FIRE IS YOUR ENEMY. 



GIFFORD PINCHOT. 



INTRODUCTION 

This guide has been prepared for Pennsylvania Boys. Because 
inany of them have given valuable assistance in forest protection, 
the Department of Forestry believes they are anxious to do effective 
work in forest fire extinction. This booklet is intended, therefore, 
to tell some of the interesting facts about forest fire, how it burns, 
how it may be prevented, and how it may be put out. 

FORESTS NECESSARY IN PENNSYLVANIA. 

Forest fires must be prevented because the future prosperity of 
Pennsylvania depends upon her supply of wood. We cannot get 
along without it — nothing we eat, nothing we v/ear can be supplied 
without wood. We cannot have this wood supply as long as fire 
endangers every acre of growing trees, and burns about 200,000 acres 
of forest land every year. We must provide for our future needs, 
therefore forest fires must be prevented. 

HOW FOREST FIRES START. 

Much might be written about how fires start and why they start. 
The kinds of fire may be grouped under two headings — (1) Non- 
preventable ; (2) Preventable. 

CLASSIFICATION OF FIRES: 

1. Non-preventable. 

Instances : Lightning and spontaneous combustion. 

2. Preventable. 

(a) Incendiary — Fires set maliciously. (Back-firing in good 
faith does not fall within this class.) 

Instances : Burning of another's woodland for one's own 
advantage. 

(b) Railroads — Fires caused during the construction, opera- 
tion, or maintenance of railroads, except those used in lumber opera- 
tions. These fires are of two classes : From engines, or from the 
right-of-way. 

(c) Lumbering — Fires caused by lumber operations. 

(d) Burning Brush and Litter — Fires caused while clearing 
land except those mentioned above. 



(e) Transients — Fires resulting from the carelessness of 
campers, picnickers, surveyors, laborers (except railroad and lumber 
operations), hunters, automobilists and other travellers or workers 
in the forest. 

(f) Miscellaneous — Fires, the origin of which is known, but 
which cannot be classified properly under any of the heads mentioned 
above. 

Instances : Tractors, fireworks, breaking of electric trans- 
mission lines, etc. 

(g) Unknown — Fires, the origin of which cannot be fixed so 
as to include them under any other head. 



NUMBER OF FOREST FIRES BY CAUSES. 



Year. 


Rail- 


Unish 


Inren- 


Tran- 


Lumber- 


Light- 


Misc. 


Un- 


Total 




roads 


Burning 


diury 


sients 


ing 


ning 




known 




1915 


274 


105 


120 


136 


28 


19 


37 


3*> 


1,101 


1916 


270 


55 


93 


182 


M 


10 


45 


312 


1.013 


19L7 


7X 


173 


127 


200 


45 


3 


62 


731 


2.087 


1918 


4ce 


115 


118 


99 


46 


6 


lea 


687 


1,625 


1919 


253 


77 


76 


118 


28 


3 


30 


378 


860 


1920 


55;J 

9TO 


104 
129 


12S 
96 


218 
121 


44 
13 


4 
10 


25 
119 


621 
917 


1,597 


19-21 


2,381 



This table of causes of forest fires in Pennsylvania shows : 

1. That very few fires are caused by lightning. 

2. That carelessness or neglect by someone causes more tlian 
ninety-nine per cent of the forest fires. No matter what the 
immediate or apparent cause may be, the real cause can be 
traced in most cases to carelessness or neglect. 

Sparks from railroad and other engines cause the greatest 
number of fires. The engines have not been properly equipped 
with spark arrcstors and closed ash pans or have been care- 
lessly operated ; safety strips have not been provided or track 
patrolmen have not put out the sparks. 

Smokers are probably responsible for the next largest class 
of fires. They are careless a\ itii matches and burning tt^bacco. 

Campers are careless or negligent with tluir cam]i fires, 

either in building them or in leaving without putting them out. 
Those who burn brush do not take precautions to keep their 
fires constantly under control. 

3. That some fires are set purposely. 



3 
PREVENT FOREST FIRES. 



Pennsylvania will continue to have forest fires, until every person 
knows the value of forests and realizes the great damage caused by 
carelessness with fire. The first thing necessary therefore in order 
to save the forests is to have every one learn how forests benefit 
them and how impossible it is to live without forests and forest 

^'ptrsons who smoke while walking or riding through the forest 
should not drop fire upon the dry leaves or grass. They must take 
no chances with matches, cigars, cigarettes, or pipe 

Those who build fires in the forest should first clear a big space; 
should keep the fire small ; should not build it against a log or hollow 
tree- and should be sure to put out every spark before leaving. 

Persons should burn brush, while clearing fields, woods, or fence 
rows only when the woods are damp, and then only with sufficient 
help and under advice of a forest fire warden. _ 

Those who operate wood or coal-burning engines in or near forests 
must insist upon equipment which will not permit sparks to escape 
Persons who persist in their carelessness or who purposely set 
fire to the forests should be punished. In order to do this local 
officials and neighbors should be interested so they wdl help pros- 
ecute the case. 

REMOVE FOREST FIRE HAZARDS. 

Some fires are started because of an unnecessary accumulation of 
inflammable material at places where the use of fire cannot be pre- 
vented The size of forest fires may be greatly mereased because of 
Ihese accumulations. The removal of this material from roadsides, 
railroads, sawmills, and engines is important. . .„, „f 

The Chief Forest Fire Warden of the Pennsylvama Department o 
Forestry has issued the following statement concerning hazards that 

'"■Z?,: TpTctions of the Ac. of June 3, 1,15, it is my duly as Chief 
Forest Fire Warden ,o declare a public nuisance any property wh ch by 
lit of its condition or operation, is a spec«. f-"g'^««„''Yo"4%b \c. 

-ri^TsStl^x in :^Seteatr,td"ur:ri'etronTb:rri 

:Hlrbt:e:t:;:ed"to';f;ffine »< no. .ore than One Hundred Donr.o 
■ under^c, i..isonni.t^not^„^^^^^^^^ or^both,^ .^^^ ^^ ^ ^^^^^^^^ 

and distinct offense. 



"1. Engines of all kinds not provided with effective spark arresters, ash 

pans, or other equipment to prevent the spread of fire when such engines 

operate within 200 feet of woodland or of other inflammable property 

likely to spread fire to woodland. 
"2. Inflammable debris within 100 feet of a steam railroad track. This 

includes uncleaned woodland which requires cleaning for the completion 

of a safety-strip along the railroad. 
"3. Inflammable debris located within a radius of 150 feet from a sawmill 

or other engine operating within woodland or operating within 150 feet 

of woodland. 
"4. Inflammable debris within 25 feet of the edge of the traveled part of 

a public highway, the clean road bed of an electric railway, or of any 

other frequented highway. 
"5. Slash from lumbering operations witliout a protective strip of 100 feet 

adjoining woodland. 
"As used above, debris means such material as slash, mowings, or other 
wastage, and accumulated forest litter. 

"It should be understood that in unusual or extraordinary cases the De- 
partment is not restricted to action based upon the conditions cited above. 
Its duty is to invesigate independently, or upon report, all forest fire hazards 
and to base its action upon the conditions in each particular case. 

"When hazards within the provisions of the Act are found, notice will be 
given to the responsible parties that they must be removed. If after notice 
duly given they are not removed, it is my purpose to declare them public 
nuisances and to recommend that action be taken under Section 1004 of the 
Act." 

SAFETY-STRIPS: Along railroads, safety-strips from 100 to 
200 feet from the rails may be lightly burned. At the outer edge of 
this strip a trail of bare soil may be dug or plowed. Several fresh 
furrows should parallel the railroad in the spring and fall along grass 
and waste fields. Owners of land along railroads should be urged 
to take some precautions against fire, and not depend entirely upon 
the railroad company. 

Burning should be started at the bare soil strip and proceed toward 
the track. Extreme care is necessary to prevent the fire getting 
beyond control and doing damage instead of good. 

All slash, brush, and rubbish that will burn, or in which fires may 
start, within 150 feet of a railroad track ought to be disposed of by 
burning or be otherwise removed. Similarly such material should 
be removed from a twenty-five foot strip along traveled highways 
and electric railways. If such material is not allowed to accumulate 
careless travelers will not cause so many fires. 

Around sawmill and other engines which are operated in or near 
forests all inllammable refuse should be removed within a circle 
having a radius of at least 150 feet, with the engine as the centre. 

In the woods, when the trees are cut, evciything in the tree that 
can be used should be taken out, leaving only the small branches. 



These may be burned in piles or scattered over the ground where 
they will soon decay. All dead trees, standing or down, should be 
used if possible. Decaying trees, crooked trees, and trees which are 
of little present or future value should be cut before the sound and 
valuable trees are cut. Keeping the forest free from such rubbish 
helps to prevent the start and the spread of forest fires. 

By keeping roads and trails through woodlands open and at least 
a foot of their surface bare to the mineral soil, fires may be attacked 
promptly and kept within a small area. 

FIRE EXTINCTION : Next to preventing fires, it is important 
to extinguish at once all fires that may start. 

The fire, when discovered, should be reported immediately, and 
should be attacked promptly by persons who know how to fight it. 
The fire fighters should be organized, but one person can do much by 
hitting the line of fire wherever possible and sticking to it. 

PRESENT FOREST FIRE ORGANIZATION. 

WARDENS: The State of Pennsylvania has an organization of 
forest fire wardens who prevent and extinguish forest fires. The 
State's Chief Forest Fire Warden is in the Department of Forestry 
at Harrisburg. He directs the fire prevention work of the Foresters 
in charge of the twenty-four districts into which the State is divided. 
The District Foresters supervise the activities of more than 2,800 
local and special forest fire wardens. 




TOWERS: There are 111 observation stations in the forested 
areas of the State. During fire seasons watchmen, or lookouts, are 
on these towers. Towers are connected with telephone lines, so 



6 

that fire fighting crews may be summoned promptly. There are also 
a number of men appointed to do patrol duty in dangerous seasons. 
The special duty of towcrmen and patrolmen is to discover and re- 
port the locations of fires. 

This organization is constantly on the alert to detect, to report 
and put out forest fires. The effectiveness of the organization de- 
pends upon the cooperation of the citizens with the wardens. These 
citizens report forest fires to the nearest wardens who will go 
promptly to extinguish them. This may be done by telephone, 
telegraph, messenger, bell, whistle, or by other methods. 

In addition to the Foresters, Forest Rangers, and Forest Fire 
Wardens of the Department of Forestry there are other persons who 
are cooperating in forest fire prevention : 

State Game Wardens are also forest fire wardens. 

State Policemen are forest fire wardens. 

State Highway employes furnish men, tools, and trucks, for fire 
extinction. 

Rural mail carriers are designated forest fire patrolmen by the 
United States Postmaster General, with instructions to report 
fires promptly to the nearest local forest fire warden. 

Telephone companies in Pennsylvania instruct their operators 
to refer forest fire calls directly to a forest fire warden. 

Railroad companies have had section foremen who are located 
near woodlands made special forest fire wardens. 

Individuals and corporations have had regular employes ap- 
pointed special wardens. 

Individuals and organizations, particularly tne Forest Protective 
Associations, Boy Scouts, Fish and Game Associations. Cham- 
bers of Commerce, etc., cooperate with the Department of 
Forestry. 

FIRE CREW: Usually wardens need help to put out forest fires. 
It is important that those who help know where to go and what 
to do. A few people well-organized into a crew and working 
in cooperation are of much more value at a fire tlian a large 
number disorganized and without method in their work. 

A good crew is made up of a foreman, who should be a forest 
fire warden, or some one designated by him. There should be 
one or two axemen according to location of the fire to remove 
brush or logs from line of attack ; three or four men with rakes 
to clean a trail, exposing mineral soil, from which to start a 
back-fire, or up to which the fire may burn and stop; a torchman 
to start a back-firt-; three or f«iur guards to watch the back-fire 



and see that it does not throw sparks across the trail, and one 
man or bo}^ to carry water. 

The crew members should respond promptly and assemble at 
a prearranged place. Each man should have the same work to 
do every time he goes on the fire-line. 

FIGHTING FOREST FIRES. 

PROMPT ACTION: The efficiency of a warden and his local 
organization is determined by the time which elapses between the 
start of the fire and the first attack. There should be no excuse for 
delay after a fire is known to exist. Quick action reduces expense, 
loss, hard work, and prevents big fires. Small fires are easily sub- 
dued. It is true that fire fighting is more effective in the evening, 
night, or early morning, but it is a criminal waste to wait until that 
time to begin. 

TRANSPORTATION PREARRANGED: The warden should 
have arrangements made in advance of the fire season for transporta- 
tion of fire fighters. It is not difficult to arrange with automobile 
owners and drivers to furnish cars on short notice for this kind of 
service. But the plans must not be delayed until a fire .starts. 

CALL OF CREW: If a fire-fighting crew is well organized its 
members can be brought together in a short time when a prearranged 
signal is sounded. This signal may be a local alarm, bell or whistle. 
It should be understood where the crew is to meet. Additional help, 
if needed, should be summoned by telephone. In some towns, ar- 
rangements have been made to sound forest fire alarms on the usual 
municipal fire bell or whistle. A distinctive forest fire alarm has 
been agreed upon so there will be no confusion. 

Ordinarily, it is not wise to call out more than two or three crews 
at the first call, unless the fire already has a good start, or that it 
is likely to become dangerous in a very short time. On the other 
hand, it is always well to remember that it is better to have one or 
two crews too many than to be one crew short. If, after reaching 
the fire it is found that more men will be needed, no time should be 
lost in sending for additional forces. If necessary, nearby fire war- 
dens should be notified by telephone or telegraph, 

ORGANIZED WORK: At a fire, the forest fire warden is in 
charge. He must keep the crew under his control at all times. 
Those who go to a fire should report to a warden. If the warden is 
absent, a foreman should be selected. The proper control of a crew 
requires skill and judgment. Too many bosses in a fire-fighting 



8 

crew slow up the attack. Determine upon a method of attack, and 
follow it fast and hard. If more than eight or ten men are present, 
the force may be divided, with a foreman in charge of each crew. 
Each crew should be stationed at some important place on the fire 
line. In this way the fire may be more clYectivcly controlled. By 
putting each man to tlie work he can do best, the whole force will 
be used to best advantage. For example, at a light surface lire one 
crew may be sent along the fire line with extinguishers or sprayers 
followed by men with rakes, shovels, hoes or brooms to clear the 
ground of litter and prevent the fire from crossing the line. Another 
crew may be sent for water to keep the spray tank supplied. Or in case 
of a fire sweeping through brush and timber, if back-firing is resorted 
to, the foreman should go ahead and decide on the line from which 
the back-firing is to be done ; one or two axemen should follow, then 
several men with forked sticks, rakes, brooms, hoes, shovels, mat- 
tocks, etc., should clear the trail down to bare earth. One torchman, 
to set the back-fire, is usually sufficient. He should be followed by 
guards, who are sometimes equipped with sprayers or chemical ex- 
tinguishers, to prevent fire crossing the trail. The rear guard must 
be the most reliable man of the crew for he must see that the fire 
line is safe before he moves up the line. 

CARE OF CREW: Forest fire fighters need water, food, and 
rest. Everyone going to fight a forest fire should take a lunch along. 
The other actual needs of the men should be supplied as far as pos- 
sible. If any men are allowed to go home for food or supplies they 
may not return promptly. The crew should work in shifts if neces- 
sary. 

LOCATION OF FIRE. It is important to know where the fire 
is before starting out. Some one, usually the warden, should tele- 
phone promptly to persons who can see the fire or smoke from it. 
The location of the fire can best be obtained from the watchman on 
the nearest fire observation tower. False alarms are sometimes 
sounded, but it is better to respond to a false alarm than to let a 
fire get well started. 

ATTACK: Upon arrival at the fire, the person in charge should 
find out two things as soon as possible: (1) which part of the fire 
is advancing most rapidly; (2) the location of forest growth or other 
valuable property which is likely to be destroyed. No two fires are 
alike, even though they may occur under similar conditions, and in 
deciding the method of attack the warden, or crew leader, is re- 
quired to apply his knowledge of conditions and his skill in handling 
his men. The two things for which he must work, therefore, are 



limitation of the area bm-ned-over, and control of the damage to tim- 
ber. He must decide quickly whether to place his men between the 
fire and the valuable forest growth or in front of the rapidly-spread- 
ing flames. In the majority of cases the latter is the logical course. 
The warden should judge the speed of the fire and decide how far 
ahead of it he will start his attack. He should know the distance 
to the nearest fire-break, such as a trail, road, brook, field, etc. 

It is assumed the warden will be prompt, and that he and his crew 
will arrive while the fire is small. But if for any reason a warden 
must attack a large fire he should take the men to the front, start 
the attack at a favorable place, and then size up conditions, going 
entirely around the fire if necessary. No time must be lost, but a 
half-hour spent in making good plans after a complete investigation, 
may determine the success or failure of the fight. 

"For instance, to beat out a hot fire line in the woods within a 
short distance of a road in a dry time is generally mistaken judg- 
ment, since the fire is exceedingly likely to break over again as it 
would not with the bare soil of the road to help control it ; or spread- 
ing a limited force of fighters on a long fire line, part of which is 
headed toward a natural barrier, and part of which is not, weakens 
the work where most needed and spends effort where unnecessary. 

"Fire can be headed or directed into natural barriers like swamps, 
clearings, old burns, hedges, etc., by choosing which portion of the 
head fire to attack first, when the whole fire line cannot be met 
promptly and effectively because of its magnitude or of lack of help. 
Judgment used in this way is worth more than hours of labor." — 
New Jersey Circular. 

METHODS OF FIGHTING. 

There are many methods of fighting forest fires. Some are good 
and some are not. Some men think their method is the only correct 
one. A good warden is always ready for useful suggestions, and is 
willing to give them fair trial. Methods of fighting vary with the 
character of the fire, type of the forest, condition of the atmosphere, 
strength and direction of the wind, rapidity of the fire's advance, 
topography, and material on the ground. 

TREE FIRES: These are stopped by shutting off the air which 
makes a draft through the hollow trunk. Close the hole at the 
ground if possible with dirt. If this cannot be done, the ground 
around the burning tree should be cleared, and the tree should be 
felled. The fire can then be smothered inside and outside. If water 
is available, the fire may be put out with force pump or sprayer or 
chemical extinguisher without felling the tree. Dead snags in forests 



10 

should be felled as a matter of fire prevention as well as for the 
benefit of the forest. 

SOIL FIRES: These fires can be stopped only by digging deep 
enough to prevent their spread. The ditch, as well as the surface 
should be flooded if possible. This, however, is seldom possible. 
Where a soil fire has a good start it may be cheaper to blast a ditch 
than to dig one. Well-placed dynamite will do effective work in a 
short time. 

CROWN FIRES: Wc have few crown fires in Pennsylvania. 
Natural conditions as to topography and growth are the best means 
of stopping any that may occur. 

SURFACE FIRES : This is the kind of fires which occur most 
frequently in Pennsylvania. If there is little wind the flames may 
be put out by beating with branches (pine preferred), shovels, and 
wet burlap. Fire fighters should beat the flames with a side sweep 
toward the fire to avoid spreading sparks. Sweeping with old 




How a Forest Fire Burns When There is no Wind.* 

brooms, brooms made of branches, or steel brooms, is better than 
beating. The burning material may be pushed back upon the burned- 
over ground with rakes, sticks, forks, or other tools. The idea is to 
separate the burning material from that not yet afire. Water is 
always effective, but too frequently dependence is placed on it. and 
when it is not available fire fighters seem to be at a loss to know 
how to make their attack. The fire can be smothered by throwing on 
dry or moist sand or dirt. If it is possible to plow, a furrow may be 
thrown up quickly to restrict the spread of the fire. 

Sometimes small or lightly-burning fires are beaten out. If no 
trail is cleared to the bare groimd entirely around the burned area, 
here and there small pieces of smouldering wood may be fanned into 
flame and the fire may again break out. It is always a safe practice 
to make a clean trail with exposed mineral earth entirely around the 
burned area. 



•TliU cut and those on pbroh U, 1M. 17. niid Hmnll one cm Ifi fn.m Nt-w Jcrsoy cirtnilar. 



11 

Chemical extinguishers are sometimes used. Careful tests have 
been made by foresters and it has been found that the chemical 
spray is of no more value in the woods than is plain water with a 
little force back of it. This force can be supplied by a foot pump, or 
by air pressure, as in the ordinary fruit spraying devices. Sprinkling 
water in front of the fire reduces the force of the flames and permits 
close beating and raking. To be effective, considerable water is re- 
quired when it is sprinkled directly on the flames. Water is used to 
the best advantage when the stream is thrown at the ground im- 
mediately in front of the flames. The water and force combined 
will stop the flames' advance. It is also satisfactory to spray water 
against the base of the flames from the rear particularly if there is 
much smoke. 

BACK-FIRING: When the wind is strong or when the flames 
are in slash, fallen logs, dead ferns, bracken, or grass, fire becomes 
so intense that it is unsafe and impracticable to attempt close attack. 
Back-firing is resorted to in such cases. It should be remembered 
that fire is a dangerous force and that when fire is fought with fire 
extreme care and keen judgment must be used. If a fire starts some 
area will be burned-over and some growth will be damaged, but in 
order to reduce the damage as much as possible some additional 
sacrifice may have to be made by starting a back-fire. The area to 
be covered by the back-fire should, however, be kept as small as is 
practicable. 



: Start one crew 

ix, here after head fire is controlled 




Back fire or 
put out fire line 
HERE FIRST. Work from 

,' MIDDLE BOTH \NAYS OR 

FROM ONE END ACROSS 
AS CIRCUMSTANCES 
DECIDE 



Dl H tC TION 



"'"fcr.oN 



**" Start one crew 

here after HEAD FIRE IS CONTROLLED 



The Correct Way to Attack Any Forest Fire. Always Work From in Front Toward the 

Rear. Stop the Head Fire First and Work Far Enough to Each Side So 

That the Side-fire Cannot Work Around to Make a New Head-fire. 



12 



Frequently under excitement, the speed at which the original fire 
is traveling is misjudged and a back-fire is started too close to it or 
too far in advance of it, usually the latter. Occasionally a back-fire 
has been set at the foot of a mountain along a road to stop a fire 
just coining over the top. Sometimes a land owner has set a back- 
fire along his property line without regard to where it may go or 
where the original fire was. Indiscriminate back-firing cannot be 



A ROAD 1/ 

^^ RAKED-T^^ 
' CLEAN f: 

4 - ' 






.nr 





^'MMt^""^' 






The Incorrect Way to Attack by Back-fire. The Head-fire Reaches the Fire- 
break and Jumps Over it Before the Back-fire Reaches the Point of Advantage. 

condemned too strongly. A lack of information regarding the loca- 
tions of fire breaks already established and the topography may re- 
sult in errors in back-firing. (Everyone should be on tlie watch for 
such cases and report them.) Such errors should be reported to the 
person in charge of the fire-fighting crews. After the necessity for 
starting a back-fire has been determined — and not before — the back- 
fire should be started as close to the main fire as practicable. Some- 
times back-fires do not stop the origfinal blaze. In that case the 
crew must drop back to a second line of defense and renew the 
attack. The retreat should be made promptly and ihc new fight 
started at once from the mo-^t advantageous position. 

Fire burns slowly down hill, and rapidly up hill. Therefore, a 
good place to start a back-fire is just over the brow of a hill up 
which a fire is advancing on the opposite side. Fires biu-n slowly 
against the wind and rapidly with the wind. The heat and draft from 
the advancing fire attracts the heat from the back-fire and hastens 
the advance of the latter when the two are approaching. Observa- 
tion of the force and direction of the wind will gi\<' warniiip; in time 



13 

to protect the men. It will also indicate whether a quick advance 
should be made to another point that is threatened by the flames. 

A back-fire should be started from a fire-break, such as a road, 
stream, or other natural barrier. In case a fire-break is not found at 




A Back-fire should be 
Started at a Road, an 
Open Trail or a Stream. 

the proper place for back-firing, one must be made. The ground 
should be cleared so that the damp mineral soil is exposed. Such 
a trail can be made very quickly even through brush with forked 
sticks, if no other tools are available. Of course, axes, brush hooks, 
rakes, hoes, shovels, and brooms are better tools. 

Usually the smoke is thickest, fighting is most uncomfortable, and 
danger of spark-spreading is greatest in line with the draft of the 
fire. The back-fire should be started at this point, and every man 
available is needed there. The back-fire should be started at the 



BEGIN BACK FIRE 
HERE 

AND WORK 

BOTM ALONG 

ROAD *«o TRAIL 




Where an Angle Can be Used, the Back-fire May 
Have to be Longer, But the Area Burned by the 
Back-fire is Reduced. Be Careful that the Side-fire 
Does Not Come Up Before the Wings of the Back- 
fire are Safe. 

lower point of a V, the sides of which are open enough and extended 
far enough to include the header of the advancing fire. The whole 
crew is available to attack promptly the spot fires in case sparks 
cross the fire-break. As soon as the header is halted the side lines 
of the back-fire may be drawn in close to the side lines of the main 



u 

fire and continued parallel to them, or even run into them. The 
rest of the fire-line may be beaten out. Remember, however, that 
a trail cleared to mineral soil should extend entirely around each 
fire to make it safe. The crew, even if small, should be divided at 
the point of the V, with a few more men on the side which should be 
advanced more rapidly or on which the danger is greater because 
of the wind. 

A satisfactory arrangement of crews is as follows : the warden 
or foreman directs the course and location of the fire-break, if one 
must be made. He is in charge of the whole fire-fighting force and 
should urge each man to do his best. According to the amount of 
brush to be cut one or two axemen or brushcutters follow the war- 
den. Four men whh small wooden rakes, or some other tool, one 




A Wooden Rake Makes a Clean Trail. 



working close to the other, make a clean trail, exposing the mineral 
soil, raking the material to the side away from the fire unless it is 
needed to start a back-fire. Next comes a man with a torch. He 
must not set fire too rapidly for the nearest raker, nor for the guards 
who follow him. If the torchman sets fire too rapidly for the rakers 
the heat may drive them off their course, and if too rapidly for the 
guards, the fire may not burn away from the trail fast enough to 
permit their moving up with the torchman. As a result sparks may 
blow across the trail where there will be no one to discover and 
stamp them out immediately. Four alert and active guards can 
take care of a long line of back-fire. They should have three-gallon 
spray tanks and a continuous supply of water. They should have 
also a rake or broom. Pine brush may be used in the absence of a 
better tool. The rear guard must be the most dependable man in the 
crew for he must determine when the line is safe and must not leave 
it until it is safe. It is important that someone who knows the woods 
after dark should be detailed to carry water. 



15 




Back-fires Are Started With Torches — 

Some authorities do not recommend a back-fire except as a last 
resort. There is no reason, however, why the principles of back- 
firing may not be used at every fire, no matter how small. Some 
persons recommend that a fire should be attacked where it is first 
met. This point, however, may be where it is doing the least damage. 
The essential point in forest protection is not merely to put a fire 
out, but to put it out in the shortest possible time, to restrict it to 
minimum area and damage. Therefore, it should be attacked where 
it is making most headway or where it is doing most damage. Some 
recommend attacking a fire on the side-line near the front. They 
contend the front is gradually narrowed and weakened until it is 



16 

easily subdued by reducing the amount of lire and draft, 
some merit to this method, but it is a makeshift. 



There is 



f^ 


1 


1 J^^ 


g^ 




ilk ^ 



The Rich Fire-tool, Which Can Be Adjusted Into Four Positions, is the Most 
Effective Fire-fighting Instrument. 

When fire runs into rocks, or burns over a \ cry rocky area, it may 
be necessary to do considerable quarrying to establish a safety 
trail around the burned area. In such cases it may be necessary to 
start a back-fire at the outer edge of the rocks and let the fire 
smoulder under them. This should be done only after careful con- 
sideration of expense and damage. 



oor%- 



How a Side-Fire May Develop a 
New Head-fire. 

In rough hilly country several headers may develop because of 
topography. The size of the force available will determine how 



17 

these headers should be handled. After one header has been subdued 
a change of wind may cause this situation to arise. It is always 
poor policy, therefore, to delay the attack on both side lines. As 
long as a flame burns prompt and continuous action is required. 





If Worked Straight Across the Head-fire, the Back- 
fire Must Be Long Enough to Check Not Only 
the Narrow Head-fire, But Also the Full Width 
of the Fire Behind. 

The foregoing illustration is described by a forester as follows: 
"It is useless to try to head off a fire ascending- a steep slope. My 
method has been to start a back-fire at the top of the slope, dividing 
my men into t^yo crews, each running a line away from the other, 
at right angles to the direction of the oncoming fire until it is safe 
to run the line down the slope in the direction of the fire, flanking 
it and finally catching it in the rear." This is a satisfactory method 
of attack. 

Occasionally a back-fire is started at the bottom and diagonally 
to the slope of a hill. As a result, usually the uphill draft causes the 
fire to move more rapidly than the men can handle it, and it some- 
times gets away. If this method is necessary, the back fire should 
be started at the top and worked down, running directly with the 
wind or at an angle to it. It paj^s to take the time to walk up a hill 
before starting the back-fire. 

It is advisable to do some thinking after a fire has been extin- 
guished. Review the plan of attack and consider whether better 
plans might have been made so that the fire could have been more 
quickly and more easily extinguished. 

THE LAST SPARK : No fire is out until the last spark is dead. 
Sometimes wardens and men leave as soon as the flames have been 
extinguished, with the result that frequently the fire has started up 
again at one or more places. Then the fire has to be fought again ; 
it is larger, is harder to subdue, takes more time, costs more, burns 



IS 

over more area, and does more damage than the first fire. No 
chances should be taken with its breaking out a second time. All 
but the most dependable men should be discharged. The burned 
area should be inspected to see that there is no danger of fire creep- 
ing across the trail which ought to have been cleared around the 
burned area. Threatening brands should bs thrown far into the 
burned area ; logs and branches holding fire should be rolled over 
and sprinkled with water or covered with dirt until they are safe. 
Punkv stumps should be examined and broken apart to see that 
thev can give off no sparks. Burning snags standing within several 
hundred feet of the unburned area should be cut down. Every pre- 
caution should be taken to prevent a recurrence of the fire. If a 
fire has been put out during the day. the tract should be patrolled 
until the wind goes down in the evening, or until dew falh. If the 
fire has been extinguished in the morning and there is the least 
danger of its starting again, the area should be |;atrolled until the 
next afternoon or evening. 

No fire is out until the last spark is dead. 



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LIBRARY Of CONGRESS 

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